AnK: Zero
by Eldan Aranye
Summary: I've been looking at this work of mine every time I check my profile. I've decided I'll do a rehash, but I'll keep this here. It's my 'Zero' version. The original sketch, if you may. :) The rehash is still titled Atarashii no Koi.
1. Let the Trip Begin!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of these characters. Only the story is mine.

A/N: I've only managed to watch the anime and the specials. I've yet to read the manga of Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun. My portrayals might be off for now, so I will do my best in the next chapters (or so I hope to do that XD). Anyway, if you guys see any mistakes in grammar or spelling, feel free to send me a message so that I could fix them right away. *bows* Thanks in advance! X3

* * *

**Let the Trip Begin!**

_How long has it been?_ Chiyo Sakura mused as she gazed at the tall, dark haired young man beside her. _How long has it been since my puppy love for you faded?_ She asked herself while her purple orbs scanned his serious face. As she quietly walked alongside the manga-ka, she counted in her head the length of time that had passed since she had confessed to him. A year. It has been a whole year since that fateful summer festival. She had told herself that she would continue loving him, even if he only saw her as a friend. That she would remain faithful until he finally realizes her feelings for him.

But it has been a whole year, and yet nothing happened along the way.

She had tried (and failed) to convey her feelings to him whenever she got the chance, but no matter what she did, she always bumbled and mumbled in front of him. At one point, she even wondered if she was not showing him enough—well—love. A fact that Mikorin straight-away refuted.

"Not showing him enough?" He had asked in disbelief when she brought it up months back. Sakura remembered how his face donned an expression of 'You're kidding, right?'. She giggled when that memory came to her. Apparently, according to Mikorin, she had showed enough love to suffocate him, Wakamatsu and Hori-senpai whenever they were helping Nozaki with his manga. A little bit more and they would all have died. Well, except her, of course.

"Sakura, was there anything funny with what I said?"

The young female snapped her head up, her eyes once more focusing on the mangaka's face. She blinked, trying to recall what he had apparently told her. But her mind had been too busy recalling what she and Mikoshiba had talked about, that she completely forgot to pay attention to what her friend was saying. She gave an apologetic grin as she slowly shook her head.

"I'm so sorry, Nozaki-kun. I got distracted. What did you say?" She asked as politely as she could, hoping that the young man would not be that mad at her for not paying attention. But this was Nozaki. Such things never bothered him.

"No worries. As I was saying, why don't we go to one of the hot springs here? Since it is winter, I suppose we could all enjoy a break." He suggested. Sakura regarded him with a bit of caution. Her eyes narrowed as she tried to read him. She had an odd feeling that this would end up in his manga.

"Nozaki-kun...are you planning on using this as material for your work?" She deadpanned. Nozaki stopped in his tracks as he stared ahead. Slowly, he turned his gaze toward his assistant. There was no mistake about it: the _gleam_ (as she and the others had dubbed it) could be seen in his onyx eyes.

"Sakura, think about it. Mamiko and her friends, and Suzuki and his friends spending two or three days at a hot spring. What kind of adventure lays waiting for them there!" And then Nozaki began to narrate what possible scenarios could arise in such a place. Sakura's expression turned from disbelief to just plain—well...there was no adjective for what her expression was right now.

"...I doubt being kidnapped by an alien would be one of the things that could happen to them there."

"...How about being eaten by a giant-"

"Nozaki-kun..."

"Sakura..."

"No."

"..."

And the pair resumed their walk, the two of them falling silent once more.

* * *

Sakura did not know how it all happened. She thought Nozaki was just kidding about the whole hot spring idea. Thought that it was just one of his passing suggestions that nobody would pick up. But she was mistaken. Or rather—Nozaki-kun found a way to bring everyone together for the trip.

And it all started with Mikorin.

* * *

"Wait, you wanna go to a hot spring?" Mikoshiba asked when Nozaki brought the subject up. The redhead looked at Sakura, who was vehemently shaking her head at him. He then transferred his gaze back to the mangaka, a doubtful look etched in his eyes.

"And what, you're gonna use it for your manga? No way am I gonna go with you if that's the case." Mikorin said. He shuddered to think what Nozaki was planning for them on that trip. But it seemed like the dark haired artist had a plan—a cunning plan—to get Mikoshiba on board.

"Mikoshiba, you remember that rare figure of a game character that you wanted to have?" He began. At those words, Mikorin's eyes widened. He didn't..?! Did he..?

"Well, I happened to see one online. It'll be arriving a week fro-"

"NOW HOLD ON A SEC!" Mikoshiba shot to his feet, his hands grabbing Nozaki's collar. Sakura's own eyes widened as she gaped at the artist. No way! That was—that was blackmail!

"Don't tell me you bought it? For—for me?!" Mikoshiba asked, stunned. Nozaki quietly contemplated his friend for some time—before nodding his head.

"Yes. I knew you always wanted to have that figurine, but you just couldn't get hold of it. So when I saw it, I decided to order it for you. Of course, you would have to pay me back." Nozaki stated. Sakura could see the cogs whirring in the redhead's mind as he weighed his options. Was he going to refuse—even with such a delicious bait held out in front of him?

"And by pay you back, you mean I'd have to go with you guys? No way in hell!" Mikoshiba yelled, his arms folding in front of his chest as he crashed back down on the floor. Sakura's face beamed. Way to go, Mikorin!

"I forgot to mention, it comes with a necklace tailored for males. You would definitely look cool in that. Cooler than Kashima-kun."

Oh, _no_...

"Y-you think so?" Mikoshiba asked tentatively. Sakura's mouth hung open in horror. _No! Nozaki-kun had used the magic word on Mikorin!_ She could see the redhead's defenses slowly crumbling as the mangaka continued to shower him with compliments.

"Yes, I do believe that with that necklace, plus your impeccable fashion sense, you'd be able to outshine any other cool guy in the campus. Or even in the city." The dark-haired young man said without batting an eye. In a flash, Mikoshiba was beside Nozaki, his arm draped across the artist's shoulder, his face a painting of pure delight. Sakura groaned. One down—how many more to go?

* * *

Turned out her question was answered by everybody.

Of course, Mikoshiba did not fail to inform Kashima about the whole thing. Even though she was his 'rival' as he claimed her to be, she was still his friend. Therefore, as his friend, she would accompany him in that small field trip of theirs. And since the prince of the drama club was going with them, Hori-senpai would definitely be tagging along (more to keep an eye on her than to participate in what Nozaki was actually planning). No, scratch that. He was tagging along. And yes, Nozaki also informed Wakamatsu about the whole thing—and naturally, Seo found out and had volunteered to go with them.

And so, all in all, the people participating in the trip were—well, their group, basically. The whole bunch of them.

And Sakura could not do anything about it, except to accept her fate and join them.

"Why..." Sakura asked, comical sadness flooding her face as they boarded their train.

"Why..." Sakura asked as they got to their seats. The boys were in the compartment opposite theirs, happily talking about what they should do once they get there.

"Why didn't anyone of you see Nozaki-kun's plan..."

And so Chiyo Sakura, currently third year student of Roman Academy, headed for the hot springs with her friends, even though she knew that this could probably end up in the manga Nozaki was making.

But there was something that she did not know yet. She did not know that, for all the groaning and complaining she had been doing...

She would be the one helping Nozaki the most, after all.


	2. The First Night: A Movie Marathon to Rem

DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the characters. Only the story is mine.

Summary of previous chapter: Sakura and the rest of the gang head for the hot springs. What could be in store for our orange-haired heroine?

A/N: And here we have chapter two. This is all from me for now, as it is 12 midnight here. XD Welp, Imma read this through some time later for any mistakes. XD Enjoy! :D

* * *

**The First Night: A Movie Marathon to Remember**

"So we're going to be staying here for five days?" Seo asked as they dumped their bags on the floor of their room. The orange-haired female nodded as she inspected the place. Odd—why did she feel a cold draft coming in? The heater was old, and even though it was functioning well, it seemed like it was not enough to keep them warm from the draft she was feeling. Curious, the petite female opened what she thought was a window—and saw right in front of her a gap. A very big gap.

They were in a room overlooking a ravine.

"Whoa...look at that. I wonder if Waka would survive if I threw him down there." Seo mused as she scanned the chasm together with Sakura. The female, on the other hand, was busy fuming in her head.

"Nozaki-kun..." She said through gritted teeth. So that was why he wasn't telling them what kind of room he had gotten for them! This was deliberate! He totally planned for this! But—why? Why would he place the girls in such a room? Surely, he wasn't planning on..?

"Whoooo! I just saw Hori-senpai's room. They have this big TV and a small fridge." Kashima said as she casually strolled into their own room. She stopped in her tracks as she saw Sakura glaring at her.

"W-what did I do?" She asked, panic rising in her chest. Did a fangirl of hers manage to attack Seo and Sakura while she was away? Was that why Sakura looked like she was going to murder her anytime soon?

"NOZAKI-KUN!" Sakura finally yelled, before running out of their quarters and charging toward the boys' room. As she slid open the door, what Kashima had mentioned earlier hit her eyesight. On the far corner was a small fridge, which was being inspected by Wakamatsu. Near the wall was a widescreen TV, which was currently being turned on by Hori-senpai. Nozaki was nowhere to be seen, as well as Mikoshiba.

"Oh, Sakura. You're here." The mangaka voiced out from behind her. The female turned on her heels, the same murderous look still present on her face.

"WHY DO YOU HAVE A BETTER ROOM THAN US?!" She demanded, her face still not changing expression. Nozaki just stared at her, before shrugging his shoulders.

"All of the other rooms are occupied. I chose this one for us because it's big, and could accommodate all four of us males. The room you have is quite smaller than this one, and definitely is more practical for you three girls." He explained. Sakura still narrowed her eyes on him, waiting for the catch that would definitely come.

"Why, is there something wrong with your own room?"

_Well, except for the fact that we might not get proper sleep in there, no, everything's fine_, Sakura muttered in her head. Of course, she would not dare say this out loud. After all, Nozaki was the one who initially paid for all of thi-

"Oi, Nozaki! The room we're in's quite cold. Can we just crash in yours?" Sakura's jaw dropped as she heard Seo's voice announcing their predicament in the most subtlest way possible. And by that, she meant as subtle as Nozaki thwacking a cockroach with a slipper. She mentally groaned.

"I see. Well, you girls get changed to something more comfortable. Bring your blankets and maybe some pillows, and we'll all just spend the night here, in our room. Maybe we could even watch some movies just to relax ourselves." Nozaki suggested. Sakura scrutinized the young man. Was this all genuine concern? Maybe it was, for she could not see the gleam in his eyes. Well, maybe for now it was like that, she thought as she walked back to their own room to change from her travel clothes. Yeah, maybe she was just overthinking stuff. After uttering a quick apology in her head to Nozaki, she began rummaging in her bag for a change of attire. She decided that she'd wear a cute t-shirt over knee-length white cotton pants. She then walked over to their built-in closet to get some blanket for herself—only to find that there were none.

"What kind of room is this?!" She yelled as Kashima and Seo looked at each other. Yuzuki just shrugged.

"Well, maybe the boys have some extra blankets. Come on, my backside's freezing. I bet Waka would make a very good heater." She said, not minding if what she said sounded a bit suggestive. Kashima grinned happily (and rather a bit too innocently) as she followed Yuzuki out of their room.

"I wonder if Hori-senpai would allow me to be his heater." She asked quite nonchalantly. _Cue in her kouhai complex_, Sakura thought as she followed the other two in defeat. Well, maybe Nozaki did have extra blankets...

–

_You've got to be kidding me!_

Sakura dropped on all fours as Nozaki informed them that he only had two spare blankets he could find. He had already asked the manager about extra ones, but the old man said there wasn't any available anymore.

"Why..." Sakura muttered as she cried comically on the floor. Was Fate testing her patience?! Or, no, rather her endurance to the cold?! She pursed her lips. Well, if that was the case...

"I'm ready to take on any challenge, Mother Nature! Bring it on!" She yelled in a clear voice as she jumped up to her feet. The rest of the group looked at her, probably thinking that the cold had managed to undo some of the screws in her head. Nozaki, on the other hand, decided to offer a bit of comfort.

"If you like, Sakura, you could sit right beside the heater. At least you'd get the full blast of it." He offered. The female nodded fervently as she took her position. She did not want to ask Seo's or Kashima's help, for she had noticed how thin their blankets seemed to be. And so she decided that maybe it would indeed be okay if she just sat near the heater. When everybody was settled in, Hori-senpai turned off the lights, and put on play the first movie that they were going to watch.

"Guys, I've put five movies on queue. I guess that'd be good enough for an initial marathon." Hori-senpai said as he settled right beside Kashima. Sakura nodded (even though she knew Hori did not see her do that). _Well, might as well get comfortable_, she thought.

Now, the set-up of the room was like this. Once you got inside, you'd find the TV to your right. In front of you, you would find a table. Immediately to your left, you would find a heater and then behind that heater was a wall that spanned maybe ten feet, before turning into a corner (the room was spacious, indeed).

As for the people...

On one side of the table were Nozaki, Wakamatsu and Seo (with Yuzuki being the one near the four-legged piece). Kashima and Hori were situated behind the said piece of furniture, while Mikoshiba was somewhere behind Hori. He was leaning against the wall, his knees pulled up to his chest. Sakura, on the other hand, was sitting in between Mikoshiba and the heater.

And she could definitely say that she was not having a fun time.

While the rest of the group had their eyes on the movie, Sakura was trying (and failing) to keep herself warm. The heater was not as great as she thought it would be (probably as busted as the one they had in their own room), and a sort of cool draft was entering through the door. She glared at nobody in particular as she hugged herself. _Mother Nature_, Sakura called out in her head,_ I shall not succumb to your challenge! I shall not admit defeat, even if I do think that my toes are already starting to feel numb. Wait, can I even move them anymore..?_

"Oi, you okay there?" Mikoshiba asked quietly as he chanced a glance at the orange-haired female. He thought he could feel her shivering beside him. Sakura, on the other hand, turned her gaze to the young man, her lips forced into a brave smile. She even used a thumbs up sign to emphasize her answer.

"Yes! Even though I think my feet have already frozen, the rest of me is still warm enough to survive the night!" She whispered through gritted teeth. _Yep, she was cold_, Mikorin concluded in his mind. Why didn't Nozaki check the rooms before they got them? He pondered as he thought of what he could do for the female. Surely, no matter how gallant he was, he could not deny the fact that he also needed the blanket. As Sakura might have figured out already, the heater was not doing them much good. But he could also not overlook the fact that the small girl was freezing right beside him. Who was he to deny her of comfort? Finally, Mikorin arrived at a compromise.

They would have to share his blanket.

It was thick enough, so both of them could still get warm and comfy under it. But the question was, was it big enough for the two of them? Mikoshiba thought the only way to find out was to actually just try.

"Here, get in." He said as he stretched out his right arm. His hand held one end of the blanket, opening up space beside him that could house Sakura. The female stared up at him for a while, before happily scooting right beside him. Mikoshiba then instructed Sakura to grab hold of the other end of the blanket and wrap it around herself. And then they both turned their gaze toward the TV. After three minutes, the two of them realized something.

"Mikoshiba-kun...I think the blanket's too small to be shared like this." Sakura pointed out as she felt the cold still hitting her legs. The redhead nodded in agreement. He could feel his own legs starting to freeze from the darn draft that was attacking them.

"We should try a different position." Mikoshiba said. Silence followed their short conversation, a silence that was only broken by the movie's sound effects and dialogue. And then...

"Oh! I know. Sakura, move here." The redhead said as he adjusted his position on the floor. He straightened up a bit more as he stretched his legs a little. He could not go all the way, for he would hit the people in front of him. But he was able to move them just enough for Sakura to sit in the space right in front of him. Sakura, on the other hand, just stared at him in bewilderment.

"Uhh...you want me to sit there. Right in front of you." She murmured, thinking about the proposition. True, she was cold. But was she that cold? She glanced at Mikoshiba, whose face was not as pink as she felt hers was. It was an innocent offer, it seemed. Wait, no-Sakura gave herself a mental shake. It _was_ an innocent offer, what was she thinking? Besides, if she did not do what Mikorin had said, even the guy would be in an uncomfortable state. Now she wouldn't want _that_ to happen. And so, without further ado, she moved to the space right in front of Mikoshiba. As she pulled her knees up to her chest, she felt Mikoshiba do the same. Now she was trapped in between his very slender legs, her back almost touching his chest. She sat rigid in her place as the redhead wrapped the both of them in the blanket. Sakura noted how easily the piece of cloth encompassed them in their new position, allowing the two of them to maximize its use.

After 30 more minutes, the first movie ended. True enough, the next film began to play a minute or so after the first one's credits faded. This one was a horror film, and Sakura noted how Kashima was playfully checking Hori-senpai every now and then, as if she was making sure he wasn't getting scared (as if their senpai would get freaked out that easily). Wakamatsu, on the other hand, was busy clutching his blanket to his chest, eyes glued on the TV, while Seo had an odd look of—happiness on her as she watched. Nozaki, on the other hand, was busy stealing glances at Kashima and Hori.

_Probably would use them as material_, Sakura thought as the first jump scare of the movie made itself known. She blinked, before the next surprise scene appeared. She did not have time to recover from the first one, and so promptly backed into Mikoshiba. Her face turned beet red as she quickly glanced at the young man behind her.

"I-I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to—!" But Mikoshiba was staring at her, a smirk toying with his lips.

"My, my...is my little lamb scared? Do not fret, for no creature shall harm you whilst I am your knight." He cooed. One second. Two seconds. Three...

"Mikoshiba-kun...please, just return to watching the movie." Sakura muttered, her fear forgotten as she watched the redhead practically boil in his place. The young man sputtered something incoherent, but Sakura just ignored it and resumed watching. A couple more minutes pass by, and then...

_Eh?!_ Sakura almost gasped out loud as she felt Mikorin suddenly hug her around the waist, underneath the blanket. She felt his face buried against her back as the scary scene from the movie continued playing. She smiled._ So even Mikorin gets scared by this_, she said to herself.

"Hey, it's over now. I mean, the scene." Sakura whispered. She felt Mikoshiba loosen his hug on her, but not remove his arms completely from her. He nodded, before turning his gaze back on the monitor. Sakura waited for him to uncoil his arms from her waist, but it seemed like he was preparing himself for another shocker. She giggled. Well, if she could help him this way, why not? Though, if he was going to use her as a sort of shield or something, she might as well do the same, yes? And so, without thinking too much about it, she leaned against the redhead, her body now pressed hard against his.

As the movie neared its halfway mark, Sakura decided to sneak a peek at Mikorin. She saw that he was still focused on the TV, but she could also see a faint pink dusting rising from his neck all the way to his cheeks. She blinked, before she allowed herself a small, satisfied smile. Somehow, she found that a bit cute. She was about to tease Mikorin about it, when another shocker came into the scene. She felt Mikoshiba tighten his hold on her, pulling her even closer to his body. His legs also moved, causing Sakura's own legs to get squeezed in between them. She felt heat rising to her face as she felt Mikorin's warmth encasing her. And she had to admit, it was far better than the warmth the blanket was giving her.

"M-mikorin, you could look now." Sakura said, her voice barely audible from all the screaming and shouting of the escaping protagonists and side characters. The redhead slowly lifted his face, his gaze now going back to the TV. But his arms were still tightly wound around Sakura, and this did not escape her. Her thoughts were nowhere on the movie now. Instead, they were focused on Mikorin's arms. Arms that looked fragile and weak, but were really muscled in the right way. And his hands. Hands that were large enough to enclose hers in a single movement. Hands that had beautiful, slender fingers...

Unconsciously, Sakura allowed her right hand to dive beneath the blanket, her fingers gently tracing Mikoshiba's (her left hand was keeping the blanket from unraveling and revealing themselves). She let her fingertips graze the back of his hand as she watched the movie with him. As the movie progressed, she had unconsciously moved closer to Mikorin, her back now firmly set against his chest. She felt the redhead stiffen a little, before relaxing. And then...

She felt it. It was barely noticeable, but she felt it. Mikorin's left hand had moved from its position, she could tell, for now she could feel his fingertips touching hers. Jolts of electricity coursed through her from that simple action. Her heart beat faster in her chest as she moved her hand, this time her fingertips grazing Mikorin's palm. That action elicited a gasp from him, and was enough to encourage Sakura to do more. They exchanged gentle touches, their hands dancing with one another in the most subtlest of ways. This dance of theirs continued until Mikoshiba finally trapped Sakura's fingers in his own. He was only holding the ends of her fingers at first, before he slowly intertwined his slender digits with hers.

Now Sakura was positive that her heart was already out of her chest by now.

The two remained linked together until the end of the third movie. By the time that film ended, Wakamatsu was already yawning with sleep. Hori-senpai then decided that they could resume the following evening, and that they could all go to bed (seeing that it was already 12 midnight). All the while he was talking, he was not looking at Sakura and Mikoshiba. The two exchanged glances, before they unlinked their hands. Sakura then stood up and walked over to the lights to turn it on. Mikoshiba had followed suit and was now standing, the blanket draped over his frame. He stared at Sakura, before he looked away, a clear red blush visible on his cheeks. Sakura felt hers redden as well as she tried to listen to Hori-senpai giving directions on where the futons could be placed. To her misfortune (or rather, luck), she would have to share with somebody's futon as well.

"Looks like mine's the biggest, so she gets to sleep with me." Mikoshiba announced as he unraveled his futon. Sakura gaped at him, unsure whether to slap him in the head or kick him for saying something so suggestive.

"Oi, Mikoshiba. Don't try doing any funny stuff to her while we sleep, you hear me?" Seo threatened. And then she turned to face Wakamatsu.

"You, Waka, sleep with me."

"E-eh?! But Seo-senpai, I have my own fu—waaaaaah!" Wakamatsu yelled as Seo dumped his futon in the bathroom, after which she ran cold water on it.

"Alright, alright. Bed, now." Hori-senpai told them before turning off the lights once more, not even bothering with scolding off Seo for mistreating Wakamatsu's bed.

As everybody laid down, Sakura could not keep her mind off what had happened earlier. _What indeed had happened?_ She thought, confused. Had she unconsciously flirted with Mikoshiba? No, no—was that even possible?

_Obviously, yes_. Said a voice in her head. She groaned. No, no, it was just...an accident. Yeah, it was just that, nothing more.

"Oi, Chibi, what're you thinking of?" Mikoshiba inquired as he turned sideways in his place to look at her. Sakura, caught unaware, just blushed a deep shade of vermilion and sputtered. She kept her voice low so as not to wake the others (who, by that time, were already happily snoring away).

"I—n-nothing, Mikorin. Just..." Confused was what she wanted to say, but she could not bring it out. Instead, she lowered her gaze until her eyesight landed on his left hand. His left hand that was just a couple inches away from hers. Mikorin followed her gaze, his face reddening as well when he realizes where she was looking. He glanced away, muttering a small 'oh' of recognition in response to what Sakura barely managed to say. After a while, he once again looked at her. He found that her eyes were already half-closed, a content smile plastered on her lips. He continued staring at her, before allowing his hand to move, allowing his fingertips to graze hers. Sakura's eyes widened in surprise, but she did not move her hand away. Instead, as her eyes eased back into a relaxed state, she let her fingers dance alongside Mikorin's, let her hand touch his once again. Their dance continued, until they slowly fall asleep, hands now linked together once more.


End file.
